When Sherra Deimeke suited up for her first day as a firefighter at Little Dixie Fire Protection District back in 1995, she joined a very small club. Census data shows that in 2000, slightly more than 3.7 percent of firefighters were women.

But that didn’t discourage the 19-year-old, who was “always up for a challenge” from pursuing her childhood dream.

“It’s every kid’s dream to be a firefighter,” Deimeke said. “In high school, I managed the football team, and I was always that girl who wanted to show that I could make it in a male-dominated field.”

She still remembers her first fire: a combine fire in a soybean field. “And I came back the next day for more,” she said. Continue Reading →